They beat the Portland Winterhawks 6-4 in Saskatoon on Sunday to claim the franchise’s first Memorial Cup.

‘‘This is the best moment of my life, for sure,” said Halifax centre Nathan MacKinnon. “It’s so crazy where we’ve (come from), especially the past four or five years for this organization. For us to be the best team in the Canadian Hockey League is unbelievable. I love these guys.”

The victory caps one of the most impressive years in QMJHL history. The Mooseheads ran away with the league’s regular season title with a 58-6-3-1 record and went 16-1 in the playoffs to capture the President’s Cup. They closed out the year by going 3-1 at the Memorial Cup, highlighted by their championship performance against the Winterhawks.

“It was the biggest game of my life so far,” said defenceman Konrad Abeltshauser. “I couldn’t imagine a better way to finish my junior career than winning the Memorial Cup with this great team.

“This is just amazing.”

The rink was buzzing with anticipation well before the opening faceoff. Hundreds of Halifax fans arrived at the Credit Union Centre early, chanting “Go Moose Go” more than an hour before the game. The crowd of 11,489 was the biggest and loudest of the whole event and the action didn’t disappoint anyone.

“We had so many family and friends make it all the way here to watch us play and support us,” Abeltshauser said. “It just paid off. It’s a great team effort — all the coaches, all the fans and staff, this entire organization worked hard for this and it finally paid off.”

The Mooseheads got off to a tremendous start, building a 3-0 lead in the first 16 minutes and taking full control of the game’s momentum. But the Winterhawks turned the tables in the second period, scoring twice to make it 3-2 heading into the final 20 minutes.

The teams went back and forth through the early part of the third period, but the Mooseheads scored twice to make it 5-2 and take a firm grip on the game. Portland pushed hard for the win in the late stages, making the score 5-4 with 1:16 left to play. But MacKinnon clinched the title with his hat trick goal into an empty net with 22.6 seconds left on the clock.

“You know what, I’ve missed a lot of those,” MacKinnon kidded. “I knew it would be icing if I didn’t make it in. It felt unreal. It was also awesome jumping in that bench with those guys. It's so great sharing this moment with them.”

The Mooseheads’ big guns continued to lead the way offensively in the nationally televised games. The line of MacKinnon (three goals, two assists), Marty Frk (one goal, two assists) and Jonathan Drouin (five assists) teamed up for 13 points and toyed with the Portland defence at times.

Some of the goals they created were works of art and the line’s overall performance provided one final memory of three of the best forwards in the QMJHL. Frk will be playing professionally next season and it’s possible MacKinnon and Drouin will be in the NHL.

“It started with hard work," Drouin said of the line’s performance. “We were proud of that. ... It was a good game for us tonight.”

Abeltshauser also scored twice for the Mooseheads and Nic Petan, Brandon Leipsic, Ty Rattie and Seth Jones answered for the Winterhawks.

“We got a little bit away from our game in the second period,” said Abeltshauser, who added an assist for a three-point night. “But starting out the third we went right back at it. We just played behind them 40 minutes of the game and it was enough.”

Zachary Fucale made 36 saves for the win and Mac Carruth stopped 38 shots for Portland.

“Portland certainly gave a good fight,” Fucale said. "It was for sure they weren’t going to give up. It was one of the longest games I’ve ever been in. I'm really happy the boys gave it their all and we came out with the last win of the season. This is awesome.”

The victory ends a 19-year wait in Halifax for a national title. The team entered the QMJHL as an expansion franchise in 1994 and also claimed its first Quebec league crown this year.

“There's no city that deserves a championship more than Halifax,” Abeltshauser said. “Those huge crowds every game, it’s just a great feeling to give the city finally what they've deserved for so long.”

This is also the first time the QMJHL has ever had three straight champions. The Saint John Sea Dogs won the Memorial Cup in 2011 and the Shawinigan Cataractes claimed last year's title.

“We were first place in the season, playoffs and Memorial Cup,” said Stephen MacAulay, who was part of the 2011 Saint John team. “You couldn’t really write it up any better.

“It’s just joy right now and excitement and pride. I’m just really proud of the group. We battled so hard together and to win your last game is pretty special.”

MacKinnon finished first in tournament scoring with 13 points in four games and was named the Cup most valuable player.

“It’s obviously nice,” MacKinnon said. “It’s nice to be rewarded for the tournament but at the same time, the memories are going to be with these guys winning the Memorial Cup; not so much the individual (award).”